GENERAL SITE INFORMATION

I want to apologize for not having a bio up yet. When I first made this website, I wrote a long elaborate bio for myself. I worked hard on it. But when I shared what I had written with my husband and closest friends, they all gave feedback that it wasn’t good! I somehow had failed to capture my story. I’ve written obituaries and bios for other people, and have some skill in capturing the essence of someone’s life. Just not my own! I fully intend to try again. I hope that who I am and what I value, shines through everything that I write. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Please check back here again. Eventually, one will be here.

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My name is actually Heidi Arena. Arena is my middle name, and it is pronounced Ah-ren-na with a soft 'e'. The Finnish pronunciation on this page is how I say my name, and how my parents pronounced it when I was growing up.  How to pronounce Arena. But I also love the Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, and Spanish pronunciations. They are close enough for me. I am astounded by the number of different pronunciations people have derived for my name. Believe me, there's even more then that website listed!

Arena was a religious name given to me when I was born, but it was not my middle name back then. My mother named me Heidi Jill, which was a perfect childhood name – it even came with a storybook and nursery rhyme!

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